Get Fit Seymour offers fitness to community

As the cold weather moves out and the sunny days of spring are ushered in, people across the county will look to get outside and get active.

For folks in Seymour there's a new source of encouragement to do just that.

Get Fit Seymour, the brainchild of Seymour resident Gretchen Rivers, offers support and weight-loss tools to members of the community seeking to get healthy.

Rivers said the event stemmed from her desire to get fit last year. "In May of 2013, I decided it was time for me to lose some weight," Rivers said. "I started my fitness journey again, you could say. Because I've been on the journey awhile, but sometimes you kind of let things slide."

After deciding to get in better shape, she lost 25 pounds. In December she talked to some like-minded people who decided to put together an event.

"Myself and some other coaches got to talking," Rivers said. "'Wouldn't it be great to have a community weight loss challenge?' It grew into a major event."

The event is free to those who registered, thanks mostly to sponsors. Classes and activities will be held at various sites in and around Seymour, including First Baptist Church, Child Help, Smoky Mountain Crossfit, Snap Fitness 24-7 and ClubFit 101. A hiking coach will lead hiking tours and a cyclist meeting in Walland.

“There’s a little bit of something for everybody,” Rivers said. “For these challengers, they will pick what they want to do most. You’ll have more success in your exercise if you do what you want.”

Prizes for individuals, teams and families will be available during the event, but the prizes have not yet been determined sponsorships and donations are still being accepted.

As of last week, Rivers and the other organizers were expecting up to 350 "challengers," what they call the participants in the weight-loss challenge.

Hundreds did show up at Seymour Intermediate School for the two-month event's kick-off.

It's great to see an organically-created event for the good of the community crop up from the hard work and plans of local individuals working together for a common goal.

Tennessee currently ranks among the worst states in the country in terms of obesity. According to recent data, 31 percent of adults in the Volunteer State are obese. That's up from 25 percent in 2003, and, amazingly, just 11 percent in 1990.

Hopefully Get Fit Seymour will have a permanent positive effort on the community and its participants will be successful in achieving their goals. Perhaps it will help jump-start similar programs across East Tennessee.